Emmanuel Wanyonyi wins the men's 800m to qualify for his first Olympics. GETTY IMAGES

Nineteen-year-old Emmanuel Wanyonyi claimed the men’s 800m final at the Kenyan Olympic trials Saturday, clocking in at a world-leading and personal best time of 1:41 —the third fastest in the world behind fellow Kenyans David Rudisha and Wilson Kipketer. Wanyonyi almost failed to qualify for the finals after he was tripped and fell during Friday’s semifinals, where he finished sixth. Despite struggling with a swollen leg, Wanyonyi bounced back on Saturday to secure a spot on the Olympic team. 

"If I didn't fall yesterday, I would not have run like this today, so everything happens for a reason," he remarked on the incident. “I didn’t want to make mistakes today. I feel I am ready for Paris and in good shape to aim for a medal there."



Also joining the team bound for Paris is Ferdinand Omanyala, who set the world-leading time in the men’s 100 m with a 9:79 —his second-fastest time ever and his second sub-10 performance of the season— erasing the previous time of 9:82 set by Jamaica’s Oblique Seville. 

"I'll go down as the fastest sprinter Kenya has ever had. Of course my records will be broken, but I'll be the person who came about and changed the notion that Kenyans are only known for long and middle distance. That is what I'm going down in books for," Omanyala told Olympics.com after the feat.   



Faith Kipyegon —double world champion and record holder in the women's 1500m— will also be part of the Kenyan squad, together with sisters Mary and Sarah Moraa and 10.000m world record holder Beatrice Chebet, among others.